Dan Burn has come a long way since the days when Craig Liddle had to “hammer him” from the touchline to the point that he doubted he even wanted to be a footballer.
But having given Burn the first big step in his career, Liddle is not surprised the “very gangly” and “unsure” lad he knew today completes an 18-year path back to boyhood club Newcastle.
Liddle was assistant manager at Darlington when he identified Burn, released five years earlier from Newcastle’s academy, as a star in the making at Blyth Spartans.
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But it took some tough love from Liddle for the 16-year-old to stick with his professional dream with the Quakers.
“We went to watch Dan for England schoolboys - myself and the head of recruitment for Darlington at the time,“ says Liddle, now the head of Middlesbrough’s academy.
“The big thing that stood out was his size - he was 6ft 5in even then. But he could play as well, and caught our eye straight away.
“I told the head of recruitment we needed to sign him before anyone else pinched him.
“We went to watch him again the following day and offered him a scholarship with Darlington, which he accepted.”
But then the hard work really began.
“He was very gangly and a little bit unsure what he needed to do and where he needed to be,” Liddle said in 2012.
"I remember the first two or three months he thought 'this is not for me', because I used to hammer him from the touchline.
"I remember one day he just turned around and said: 'what do you want me to do?' I had to go through everything, and looking back, that chat helped.
"I told him: 'The minute I stop shouting at you, that's when you've got a problem because that would mean I've given up hope on you'.
"He progressed really quickly and the one thing he did have was a desire to be the best.
"He was working part-time in Asda before he came to us and did find the training hard, but it was better than stacking shelves for a living."
In return, Burn did commit – in every way – to Darlington.
“He used to travel from Cramlington to Durham every day,“ Liddle recalls. “He used to have to get a bus, then a train.
“He then had to get another bus and walk to the training ground, and I don’t think he was ever late.”
“He was a fantastic young man - he just wanted to get better every day.“
Needless to say, with Burn having begun to flourish in the Darlington first team in the 2010-11 season, nobody was happier than Liddle – a Quakers legend - when Fulham came in for the youngster that summer.
And while nobody is happier for Burn that his dream of a return to his boyhood club is imminent, Liddle is neither surprised about it – nor in any doubt that the prodigal son will help Newcastle stay up this season.
Liddle said: “I think he will be unbelievably proud and delighted and excited about it all.
“He takes everything in his stride. Coming back to Newcastle will be a big challenge for him but one that certainly won’t faze him.
“He is an established Premier League player now. It will be more excitement than anything else, he’s proven to be able to play at that level.
“Coming into a relegation battle, I think he will handle it really well and take it all within his stride. He will be a fantastic addition to Newcastle.
“He defends; he wants to defend - he enjoys defending. But his size is obviously also an asset in both boxes for set pieces.
“He will bring a lot of calmness and experience to the side and I think he will thrive on the challenge of keeping his boyhood team in the Premier League.”
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